Only You
by ShilohWhittier
Summary: Part Two in my ongoing series with Reid/Zoe - OFC. Zoe and Reid's romance has been going along flawlessley. Neither of them could remember a time when they felt so happy. But when a woman from Reid's past reappears, will the relationship remain solid? And how does the team react to Spencer's new love? More info inside.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello readers! If you are just now clicking on this story - it's the second part in a series I'm working on currently, and you can read the first part here - fanfiction s/9622414/1/The-Last-Victim **

**If you are back for more Zoe/Reid goodness, thanks so much for continuing this with me! I hope you enjoy what I have so far, more fluff, romance, and loveeee to come. Please review and let me know if you like where the story is going. Rating may change as story goes on, but I will warn you before hand! Also, pictures of Zoe's apartment can be found on my profile, where there will also very soon be links to fanart of Reid and Zoe! Thanks for reading!**

* * *

_"Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own." - Robert A. Heinlein  
_

_3 weeks later _

Zoe Martin stretched out on her new bed, rubbing her eyes. She blinked up at the strange ceiling, not yet familiar. She grinned, thinking of the night before. She rolled over, checking the time on her phone. It was only 6 in the morning. What on earth had woken her up?

She sat up, tucking the sheet around her. She climbed out of her bed, wiggling her toes on the carpet that covered the hardwood floor. She carefully crept towards the double doors that led into the rest of the apartment, and opened them quietly.

In the living room, Spencer was searching for something. He wore a checkered shirt and a thin tie, and a pair of boxers. She giggled, leaning against the door frame and watching him.

"Pants?" he asked, looking slightly bewildered. She laughed, and turned back into her bedroom. She scanned the room, and saw them, hanging over the television in the corner. She returned to the living room and tossed them to him. "Thank you." he said, hopping to put them on. "I'm really sorry, it's just, there's a string of abductions in Texas and they're was just another one last night, and we have to fly out in like an hour, and we haven't even had a chance to go over the case, really." he said quickly.

Zoe grinned at him, watching as he checked and double checked he had everything in his bag. Finally, he turned to her and smiled.

"I'll see you soon," he said, and was gone. Zoe walked towards the door, leaning against the back of the couch. Less than a minute later, the door reopened.

"I knew you'd remember." she said to Reid.

He reached for her face carefully, kissing her gently. "Thank you for last night." he whispered.

"Thank you." she said, smiling up at him. "Now go catch some bad guys."

With a final kiss, he was gone for good.

* * *

On the plane, Spencer was having trouble concentrating. His mind reeled from flashes of images from the night before - Zoe's lips on his neck, his hands dwindling across her skin, the sweet laugh and her careful words that sent chills down his spine as he thought about it.

"Reid. Reid!" a voice pulled him from his daydream. He looked up, surprised to see the entire team watching him, perplexed. Hotch looked irritated.

"I'm sorry, I sort of got distracted. What did you say?"

"You're on victimology." Hotch repeated, and Reid nodded, looking back down at the file. He felt someone's eyes on him, and glanced up at JJ, who was watching him with an arched brow. She gave him a knowing, and slightly scolding, look.

"We've got 5 missing children, all boys of the same age, same race, same hair color. None of them have turned up, and right now, we're acting as if they're all still alive."

"Were they all taken from schools? Or playgrounds, is the site of abduction varying?" Morgan asked.

"It varies. The first two boys were taken from playgrounds, one from a grocery store, another from the front yard of his daycare, the last, and most recent, from his home, in the middle of the night."

"He's escalating."

"What if it's not a he?" JJ asked.

"Well, images of the first two boys have just popped up on child porn sites, so we'll be working with the local PD as well as The Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Garcia is working on pinpointing the location of the images. JJ and I will meet with the families, Morgan, I want you and Reid at the abduction sites, Emily and Rossi can start a preliminary profile with what the PD has."

* * *

After she got another two hours of sleep, Zoe awoke again. Her bed still smelled like Spencer, her sheets, her skin. She slipped on a tshirt and hurried to the kitchen, starting a pot of coffee. She bounced on her tiptoes, trying to wake herself up. The apartment was still looking unlived in, everything was new to her, foreign and strange. There hadn't been a lot to salvage from the fire, but she had saved some slightly charred family photographs, two paintings from Brazil, some small household items, like a mug Zoe loved, and a few books.

Starting over hadn't been so terrible, she got to pick out all new furniture, a shiny sleek new laptop, dishes and curtains. Not a day went by, though, where she remembered yet another thing she still needed to buy. As she slipped into the bathroom, she realized she still didn't have a toothbrush holder, and the small plastic cup had fallen over in the middle of the night.

She'd ended up buying one of the apartments from the list Spencer had given her. It was beautiful, airy, with hardwood floors and huge windows that looked out over the cityscape. She hadn't ever really felt something was just hers, but now she did.

She took a quick shower, and dressed in some of her new clothes. That was maybe, just maybe, her favorite part about the entire thing. She could finally retire her mom's ratty old hand-me-downs and thrift store pick ups, and afford something she looked pretty in. Since her job allowed her to be pretty casual, also since most of her work had been in field or in lab lately, she picked out a green blouse and a pair of slacks, and tied her hair up into a nice ponytail.

She poured a cup of coffee and settled down on the couch, pleased with the moment of peace. When she sat down though, her elbow hit something hard. She turned around, lifting a throw pillow, and founds Reid's laptop in the cushions. She laughed, knowing since he only ever used it for email, it probably wouldn't be a problem that he forgot it. She opened it up, to make sure it was powered off. The screen blinked on, and up popped Spencer's email. She was just about to close the window, when a notification popped up in the right hand corner.

_3 unread IMs _

'Don't snoop." she told herself internally. A snippet of one of the IMs had popped up as well, a preview to the message.

"Hey, it's Lila Archer, I'm sure you don't remember me but-"

She chewed on her lip, staring at the name. Why did it sound so familiar? Wasn't she a celebrity or something?

She set the laptop down, powering it off. She couldn't bring herself to read it, even though she wanted to. It was probably work related, and none of her business.

She drank her coffee slowly, keeping a wary eye on his computer.


	2. Chapter 2

The case went by quickly for Spencer. The serial kidnapper wasn't the most intelligent of sorts, and he managed to leave a few breadcrumbs. All 5 boys, against all odds, were returned to their families. The team returned to Virginia two days after they left, exhausted but satisfied.

Spencer was excited, as usual, to see Zoe. That evening they were supposed to out to dinner together, although right before he climbed on the plane she'd called him, saying she wanted to cook for him instead. Some authentic Brazilian food, like her mother used to make.

However, Reid felt uneasy for some reason. Nervous, which was something he hadn't yet felt around Zoe, or when thinking about her.

He sat on the small couch in the plane, tapping his foot while thinking.

"Hey, how are you doing, Spence?" JJ asked, sitting across from him.

"I'm good. Better than usual." he gave her a small smile, and she returned it.

"Look, Spencer." she sighed. "I just want you to be careful. None of us want you getting hurt."

He looked down at his knees, fiddling with his fingers. "I appreciate that, but I don't think you have to worry, really."

"That's what I like to hear."

* * *

After Reid had showered and changed, he made his way over to Zoe's apartment.

He pressed the buzzer for her number, and she answered a minute later.

"Spencer?" she said.

"Yep. Hi." he replied.

"Hi, come on up and let yourself in."

_Bzzzz _

A few moments later, she heard the door open.

"Hey, I'm in the kitchen!" she called. The entire apartment smelled like rich food, spicy and sweet and tantalizing. Spencer appeared in the door frame of the kitchen, leaning against it.

Standing at the stove, Zoe was barefoot, but wearing a pretty flowy green dress that hit her just above the knees, and her hair was down and curled.

"Wow," Spencer whispered, and she glanced over her shoulder and smiled.

"What?"

"It just...it smells really good is all." he said. "Do you need any help?"

"No, it's almost done. Vatapá, Brazilian style rice, Pao de Queijo, and then bridgardeiros for dessert." she said. "How'd the case go?" she asked.

"Good. We got all the victims home, safe and sound."

"That's wonderful!" she said.

"How's work been for you?"

"Great. We're working on a state-funded project to estimate the life-span of the eco-systems in some state parks. It's a lot of work, but it's fun, actually." She tapped her foot against her leg as she stirred the bubbling pan of food, and hummed along with the radio in the corner. Spencer watched her for a minute, until she realized he was. "What?" she asked.

"You look really nice."

"Thanks. I tried." she replied. "Wanna grab the plates for me?"

Spencer found two striped plates in the cupboard next to the fridge. "This is a traditional sort of curry-type dish in Brazil, with shrimp and this super good coconut-cashew sauce." she carefully ladled out two servings onto each plate, over rice. "And then this is some cheese bread that actually is usually just a snack or even breakfast, but I like it for dinner too." she held the two plates, walking towards the dining table, smiling at Reid over her shoulder.

The dining room was adorned with candles, and she beamed up at him eagerly. "I know, I got really cliche." she carefully set the plates of food down.

Reid was speechless. He'd never had anyone do something so nice for him, at least, not in a romantic setting. His silence worried Zoe.

"Do you like it?" she asked.

"I do. I love it." he said, laughing slightly. "It's incredible."

"Good. C'mon, try the food."

Sure enough, it was just as good as it smelled. Reid made a noise of satisfaction. "I don't think I've had homemade food in at least a year." he said.

"How's it taste?"

"Better than I imagined. It's great, really." he said, looking at her carefully while he chewed.

_"Bom, eu estou contente."_ she said quickly, and then laughed.

* * *

A couple hours later, they sat on the couch, drinking wine and eating away at the mountain of bridgardeiros Zoe had made - little chocolate truffles covered in sprinkles.

"...and every girl wears these tiny little bikinis, and everyone drinks mate tea which I don't really like too much but my mom flipped out over. The people are all really nice and welcoming. Nobody is really in a hurry like everyone is here." She wrinkled her nose. "I miss it."

Spencer took another swallow of wine. "I bet it's incredible. Maybe we should go someday." he suggested, and she giggled.

"Are you maybe a little bit tipsy, doctor?" she laughed.

"No, I'm not. Not at all. I'm another glass away from being tipsy." he grinned back at her. "You're beautiful."

She looked down, shyly. "You're just saying that."

"No you are. You really are." he leaned forward, tucking some of her hair back behind her ear. She bit her lip, looking at his big brown eyes and feeling a rush of electricity through her bones.

Before she knew it, he was on top of her, they were entwined, attached to one another by their lips. She buried her hands in his hair, slid them around his neck and down his chest.

"You okay?" he whispered, his breath slightly labored.

"Fantastic." she gasped back. "Why did you stop?"

"Right." he said. He gently grabbed her hair and moved her head back, kissing down her neck and throat. She shivered.

After a few more minutes, she came up for air again. "Bedroom?" she whispered in a haggard voice. With one swift movement, Spencer was standing, holding onto Zoe. Her legs were wrapped around his middle, and her arms wrapped around his neck. She was always impressed by the strength hidden beneath his lean muscles.

She felt a deep connection in her core drawing her ever closer to Spencer with each kiss they shared. And he felt it too. Their skin warmed up with every touch, and their breathing became increasingly sharp and desperate. He stumbled slightly, and pressed her against the wall next to her bedroom. She made a small noise in the back of her throat, and Spencer couldn't resist smiling in between kisses.

"Still good?" he asked a moment later.

"Mmm...hmmm." she replied.

He moved her again, one hand slipping up her thigh as they fell into the bed.

"Another night, then?" she asked after a while.

"I want a hundred nights, right now, to be perfectly honest."

The night drifted into a tangle of sheets, sweet whispered words and noises, and finally, ended with Zoe clinging onto Spencer, fast asleep, with him wide awake, trying to remember a time when he'd felt so happy.

* * *

**A/N: I just needed some good fluff, didn't you? Thanks to everyone who followed the story, please please review ~ more Lila drama coming up, so stay tuned!**


	3. Chapter 3

It was 9 before Reid finally opened his eyes. Zoe was still curled beside him, her breathing soft and measured. Light streamed in from outside, illuminating the bedroom. He turned on his side, carefully running his fingers across Zoe's shoulder and back. She made a small noise of satisfaction, and turned over to face him, cuddling closer but still not opening her eyes.

"Hi," she mumbled into his neck.

"I didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't. I was just laying here." she said. "Did you sleep alright?"

"The best." he said. "I think you're curing my insomnia."

"I think regular sex might be doing that." she said, to which he laughed.

"That's a pretty good point."

"How's your head feel?" she asked.

"My head?" he repeated. "Um, fine, why?"

"I've got a red-wine headache." she said. "I'll take some Advil and drink a gallon of water and be back to new." she said, attempting to sound cheerful, but instead she just winced.

"Here, close your eyes." he said, and she obliged. He ran his fingers through her hair, slowly and carefully, at a steady pace, until she was practically purring. He closed his own eyes, just focusing on the feel of her soft hair between his fingers.

"I don't ever want to leave this bed." she said quietly. "Wait, hold on, there's something I want to ask you." she sat up, propping her chin on her arm, still resting on his chest.

"What's that?" he smiled.

"Are you, like, my _boyfriend? _Are we all...exclusive?" she asked. "I mean, we go on dates whenever we can and we've slept together...6 times now."

"I thought we already were." he said with a furrowed brow.

"Oh! I guess so. I just wanted to make sure." she said. "That we were on the same page is all."

"Absolutely." he said. "How's your head?"

"I think my doctor's cured it."

"Your doctor?"

"My doctor." she repeated.

"I like that." he said.

"Good." she said, sitting up. "Hungry?"

"Little bit." he said. "It is Saturday, right?"

Suddenly her face changed, and she gasped. "It is! Shit!" she stood, running towards the phone in the corner of the room.

"Is that my shirt?" Reid asked as she was dialing. She nodded, but held a finger to her lips.

"Hi Jolene, it's Zoe." she said. "Yeah, I'm so sorry, it totally slipped my mind...yeah. Yeah! You can bring her over now if you want, that's fine." she said, taking off her panties and hopping towards the closet, the phone in between her shoulder and ear. "No, totally, it's no problem. Yeah, I offered remember?" Spencer watched as she changed into a yellow summer dress. "That doctor guy?" she said, and laughed, looking at Reid. "Yeah, he, uh, _Spencer, _spent the night." she said. Reid heard some sort of excited shrieking from the other end, and then a fast succession of questions. "I don't know, uh, maybe, I guess? Yes, you can meet him. No...yeah. He has a godson, he likes kids?"

Spencer gave her a questioning look and she returned with an exaggerated shrug. The woman on the other end kept chatting and Zoe turned to him, pressing the receiver to her chest.

"Bra?" she whispered. Spencer looked around, saw it on the floor next to him, scooped it up and tossed it to her. She mouthed 'thank you.'

"Okay, Jolene. Jolene, no, just hang up, don't take on the phone and drive. Okay. I'll see you soon." she hung up.

"Shiiiiiiiit." she said again, finally sliding the straps over her shoulder. "I totally forgot I promised my coworker I'd babysit her daughter for the day."

"Huh." he said, sitting up.

"And like you're totally welcome to stay if you want, but I understand if you don't want to."

"No, I'll stay. Sounds like fun, actually." he said, and then paused for a second. "This is off subject, but I didn't leave my laptop here, did I?"

"Oh yeah, you did, I forgot. It's on the kitchen table." she said, and then remembered the strange IM's. She chewed on her lip for a second, and then smiled.

"Great, I have to check my email and make sure nothing came up." he said, standing and walking towards the bedroom doors.

"Freeze!" she said. "Clothes first, mister, I don't want to be too harshly judged by Jolene."

"How old is her daughter?" he asked, turning to locate his pants and retrieve his shirt from the closet.

"8 months." she said.

"Jeez, so just, like, a little baby?" he said nervously.

"Don't worry about it. If you stay you won't have to do a thing. I know, babies are scary, yada yada yada." she said, kissing him quickly before she ducked out into the living room.

"What a woman." he muttered to himself as he got dressed.

* * *

Once he was properly clothed, he went to retrieve his laptop, and sat down at the small kitchen table. Zoe was making coffee and doing dishes from last night, but kept glancing at him nervously.

"What's wrong?" he finally asked, as the computer opened his email server.

"Nothing." she replied faster than usual.

A moment later, the IMs from Lila popped up. She watched his eyes go to the notification, his brows knit together, and heard a click. He read quickly, and then his brows shot up, and he rested his head in his hand. "Son of a bitch." he mumbled, the first time she could remember hearing him swear.

"What is it?" she asked cautiously.

"Uh," he began, trying to find a way to put it lightly. "This girl- this woman- this person I met like, years ago, on the job is all. She messaged me, she's going to be in the area, wants to catch up. Which is weird." his eyes fell back on the screen. "We never talked again, I guess."

"How'd you meet her?"

"She was an actress who was being stalked, we were working a case, I was on her protective detail-"

"Oh." Zoe replied, the words slapping her across the face. Her hands were submerged in warm water, but she could feel them becoming cold and clammy. "So I guess being the body guard for beautiful women is just a _usual _thing in your line of work."

"What?" he said, genuinely surprised. "No, Zoe, it was a long time ago, and it hardly ever happens. You're the only one I-" he made a noise of frustration.

"I'm the only one who what?" she asked. "Called you back?"

"Zoe," he said, his eyes hurt.

"I'm sorry." she said quickly. "I didn't mean that."

"She was strange, image obsessed, wealthy and kind of...vapid. Nothing like you."

"I don't know. I'm pretty wealthy now." she said, with a small smile.

He stood, walking to her, wrapping an arm around her waist.

"I'll get you all wet."

"I don't care." he said. "Zoe, you're the most beautiful, wonderful, kind woman I've ever met - who also happened to be involved with a case. You're the only one. Only you."

She rested her head on his shoulder. "Okay." she said. "Good."

He laughed.

And then the doorbell rang.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi, readers, hope you enjoyed that last chapter. For this one, we'll get a little glimpse of how Zoe and Spencer handle a child - yeah, I know they've only been together a month ~~ PSH. Read and review, por favor! 3 muah!**

* * *

Zoe buzzed up Jolene. Spencer leaned against the back of the couch, only just then spotting Zoe's dress from the night before next to her door in a rumpled mess. He quickly grabbed it and tossed it into Zoe's room at the last moment. She gave him a grateful look, and opened the front door.

A woman with curly blonde hair holding a baby on her waist marched into the apartment, her eyes on Reid.

"Wow, he's adorable!" she said in awe.

"Thank you?" Reid said after a moment.

"Oh! Sorry, I'm Jolene, nice to meet you, _Doctor._"

Zoe watched the scene with bemusement.

"Spencer is fine."

Jolene turned to Zoe. "Hi honey!" she said.

"Hi, Jolene." Zoe replied brightly. "How are you?"

"Sleep deprived, although I'm sure you can relate." she said with a wink, gesturing at Reid. Zoe turned pink.

"How's baby Melody today?" she asked, cooing at the baby. The child was small for her age, with slightly almond shaped blue eyes and dark hair. She smiled up at Zoe, who smiled back.

"She's her usual bubbly happy go lucky self." Jolene said. "Look, I've got some errands to run and then I have a date with my wonderful and frankly un-adorable husband, so I'll be back around 7, since we want to make an early night of it. Again, thank you so much for this. Her diaper bag is filled with whatever she might need, milk, diapers, you know - baby shit. Okay." Jolene gave a quick kiss to her daughter and handed her over to Zoe. "Have fun you crazy kids."

And just like that she was gone.

"Hi there precious girl." Zoe sang, bouncing the baby on her waist. "Want to come say hi to my very handsome man over here?"

She danced over towards Spencer, spinning once before reaching him. "How do you feel about babies, Agent Reid?" she asked.

"They're pretty interesting developmentally, for example, right around this age she'll just be able to start holding herself up, grasping smaller-"

"Spencer."

"They're cute." he said. Melody seemed absolutely fascinated by Reid's hair, and watched it for a while before reaching for it. He couldn't hold back a small smile.

* * *

As the day passed quietly, uneventful save for the small guest. Zoe still chatted with Spencer as she usual did, they ate together, laughed together. Zoe was just occupied with the child as well.

Around 1, after Melody had gone down for her nap, Zoe sat beside Spencer on the couch. She looked thoughtful, although concerned.

"What's on your mind?" he asked after a moment.

"I'm just worried." she said quietly. "What are the chances that I might...you know, be a serial killer?" she asked. Reid smiled.

"Very low. He didn't have any hereditary disorders, say like...schizophrenia."

She looked slightly embarrassed by her own question. "What are the chances that your children might have...um-"

"There was a 13% to 15% chance that I would get it, but it increases just slightly with a non-direct relative, say, like a grandparent." he cleared his throat. "In fact, if I had it, there would be less chance of my children having it then there is."

"And how does that make you feel about having kids?"

Right as he opened his mouth to answer, his phone rang. He slipped it out of his pocket, glanced at the number, and answered. His face fell as he heard the news on the other end.

"I have to go." he said sadly once he hung up.

"It's Saturday." Zoe said.

"I know, and I promise, when I'm back, I'll make it up to you."

And before she could do anything, he was gone. And Zoe couldn't stop the slight twinge of hurt in her chest.

* * *

_3 days later _

Zoe sat at the bar, quietly tapping her fingernails against her glass. Spencer wouldn't arrive for another few minutes, but she always found herself arriving early to places. There was a quiet hum of music, and hardly anyone in the bar. She wore a tight black dress and her hair braided loosely. She felt good, eager to see Spencer, who'd been gone for three days on a case.

"Hey, sweetheart." a deep, unfamiliar voice said from behind her. Some man with dark, greased back hair, who resembled, vaguely, a trashbag filled with meat. "Whatcha drinking?" he asked.

She cleared her throat. "Um, I'm actually waiting for someone." she said.

"Well, I'm here and he's not." the man said, taking a seat next to her. "Let me buy you a drink." He smelled like whiskey and cheap cigarettes, and she felt herself lean away from him.

"That's alright, I already have one."

"C'mon, don't be rude." he insisted, leaning over and grabbing her leg. If he had grabbed her normally, she would have shoved him off, but instead, it was like a vice grip. So hard it was painful, and she knew there would be bruises. She winced.

"Fine." she gasped, her hand tightening over her cell phone. _Hurry up Spencer_

"What's your name?" he asked, after ordering another whiskey from himself and her. She didn't touch it.

"Zoe." she said through clenched teeth. "Look, I really need to go."

"You're too pretty to be anywhere but here." What? That didn't even make any sense. "So stay here. I know women like a man who's in control." he said.

"I'm waiting for someone." she repeated.

"Yeah, well, whenever he gets here, let's see who you'd rather go with."

"Him." she said flatly. "And you can take this, I don't want it."

He squeezed her leg again, making her squeak with pain. She shut her eyes. "Drink it." he ordered. "And don't make a scene, or else you'll get worse than this. I think you're going to come home with me tonight."

* * *

**A/N: Hey everyone, sorry for the delay. Next chapter up right after this one, please review, I'll kiss you on the forehead and give you candy if you do! Muah!**


	5. Chapter 5

She glanced over her shoulder, desperately wishing for Spencer to walk in. God, there were some horrible people in this world.

"What's your name?" she asked, trying to keep him from doing anything rash.

"Jeff." he said.

"That's a nice name." she said. "You workout?" another glance to the door. Spencer! His eyes fell on her, he smiled, but then read her expression. And behind him, his team did the same. She practically began crying from relief.

He was next to her in a second, trying to stand between her and the man.

"Hi there, my name's Agent Spencer Reid, I'm with the FBI, and actually, if you don't take your hand off her leg, the chances of you being arrested are very high." he said quickly.

"Mind your own business, skinny." the man said with a shrug.

"She's my business."

Jeff's eyebrows raised, and he laughed. "This is who you were waiting for?" he asked.

"Yep." Zoe said, glaring at him.

"And, come to think of it, my friends are sitting over there, and that one scary looking muscled up guy, he won't like this either, so maybe you could just, leave." Spencer said, pointing at the table of Agents. Morgan saluted.

"What, can't fight your own battles?" Jeff said, standing. They were the same height, although Spencer was much thinner.

"No, nope, afraid I cant." he laughed. "But I usually have my gun do it for me."

And he slightly moved his coat to reveal his sidearm.

With a disgruntled eyeroll, the man finally sauntered off, passing Spencer and bumping him.

"I'll see you around, honey." the man said to Zoe.

"Like hell you will." she hissed.

When he was finally out the bar door, Zoe sighed, slumping against the counter. "I'm glad you're here."

"Was he bothering you long?" he asked.

"Not really. Bruised the hell out of my leg though." she shifted, revealing the bright red mark where his hand had been.

"Jesus-" he mumbled, his fists tightening. "I'm going to go have some words with him." he said, pushing off the counter and turning around.

"Spencer!" she called, sliding off the stool and going after him. Morgan beat her to the punch, calmly blocking his path and putting a hand on his chest.

"Easy there, pretty boy, you could get in a lot of trouble for going after him." he said. "I know you're mad, but focus on Zoe right now."

Spencer made a frustrated noise. "Look what he did to her!" he said, motioning to Zoe's thigh.

"You just can't catch a break, can you?" Morgan said.

"Tell me about it." she said.

"Look, then, I go get the guy, and she can press charges. Do you want to press charges, Zoe?" he asked.

"No." she replied. "In fact, I really just want a drink. Spencer?" she said, leaning towards him, reaching for his hand. "C'mon. Rum and coke? It's okay, now."

He turned around, looking at Zoe. "I'm just going to have one." he said, obligingly.

"Great. Go sit down, I'll get them." she insisted.

* * *

The rest of the team turned in early, with just a couple of drinks, but Zoe and Spencer stuck around. In a matter of 2 hours, Zoe had 5 rum and cokes, trying to push down the annoyance and frustration from her interaction with the man at the bar.

It worked.

Spencer, however, stayed sober. He watched as Zoe slowly wilted down in her seat, and ended up with her head on the table.

"Time to go home?" he asked with a smile, slowly rubbing her back.

"Yeah. Maybe." she hiccuped. "You know that there's caffeine in those things specifically so you don't fall asleep. 'Parently there isn't enough."

He laughed lightly, all anger melting away as he realized how vulnerable she was behaving in reaction to it.

"Seepy." she giggled.

"C'mon baby, up you go." he said, trying to help her out of the booth.

"Baby?" she said. "Mmmmm I like that."

"You're drunk." he said.

"Very much so. But sober Zoe liked it too."

"Sober Zoe?"

"She's in there. She's been through a lot tonight. She needs some quiet." she looked down at her chest and laughed. "Call me baby again."

He pulled her close, leaning down to her ear. "Baby, it's getting really late."

She pressed her forehead into his chest and stomped her feet.

"Take me home, Doctor Reid. I'm a little sick." she laughed.

"Spencer!" a voice said from behind them. His memory kicked in, and his stomach sank as he recognized it. Zoe peeked over his shoulder woozily, and sighed. "I heard this was a cop bar from a friend, and I was hoping I might see you here. I've stopped in everyday for the past week." Lila Archer sang. He turned around, so Zoe was visible, and Lila froze, her smiling fading slightly.

"Hey," he said awkwardly. "I didn't think…I didn't know." He paused. "How have you been?"

"Oh, just fine. I'm working on a film here for the next few weeks, thought we could catch up, see how things were since we left off." She bit her lip, and Spencer shifted slightly. "But I see that things have changed."

"It's been six years." He said.

"I'm Zoe." Zoe hiccupped. "And I'm just a little bit ine-inebriated."

Lila arched an eyebrow, and grinned. "Lila." She said smoothly.

"This is my girlfriend." Spencer said.

"I've had a- night. Bad." she explained.

"I'm sure you have." Lila said, and Zoe looked confused, putting her head back on Spencer's shoulder. "Are you calling her a cab, or…?"

"I'm taking her home, actually." Spencer said flatly. Lila smiled, but looked slightly disappointed.

"I knew I should have called you back then." She said. "We had something. I'm sorry I didn't."

"Right….here." Zoe mumbled, sinking lower and lower on Spencer's chest, who supported her around her waist.

"I'm not. I'll see you around, Lila, if we bump into eachother again." Spencer said.

Lila sidestepped, finally unblocking their path. With an arm steadying Zoe, he raised his eyebrows, gave Lila a small frown, and led her out the door and towards his car.

"Did you bring your car?" he asked.

"Cab." She said by way of explaination. "She was so pretty. You didn't tell me how pretty she was."

"You're much prettier."

"You're just sayin' that." She giggled. "I am very drunk." She said.

"I know." He smiled. She leaned against the side of his car as he fumbled for his keys.

"You driving?" she asked.

"Would you like to?" he joked.

"I'm not so sure…I can. I'm very drunk." She repeated. "I'm sorry." She hung her head in shame. Spencer opened her door for her and watched as she slid in. She leaned forward, resting her head on the dash and groaning.

The drive was quiet, only Reid asking Zoe how she was feeling every few minutes, just in case she had to be sick. "I'm sorry." She repeated quietly every couple moments, to which Spencer would smile slightly and tell her it was okay.

The walk up the stairs to her apartment was the most challenging thing, seeing as she was practically falling asleep on her feet. By the third flight of stairs, where her apartment was, Spencer was practically carrying her up every step.

"Do you want to change, or stay in this?" he asked once he'd set her on her bed.

"Change please." She said, her voice barely audible. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Zoe. Just hold onto my shoulder here, okay?"

With a quick movement, he unzipped the black dress and tugged it off, before letting her fall back onto the bed. "This is good." She said, suddenly louder again. Spencer looked at the bruise blossoming on her thigh and felt a bubble of anger returning to his stomach. He clenched his teeth, trying to pry off the strappy heels she'd been sporting. When they were finally off, she crawled up into bed and snuggled underneath the blankets with a sigh.

"I'm sorry, Spencer." She said again, her voice muffled by the pillow. "You take care of me too much."

"Impossible." He said, smiling, slipping off his shoes and climbing in after her, on top of the covers. He leaned over the nightstand and felt around for the book he'd left behind, and then switched off the light. Zoe was fast asleep, breathing deeply.

In the peace of the moment, Spencer realized how deeply he was beginning to feel for Zoe, and for a while, he kept his hand over hers, and focused on the sweet sound of her gentle breath.


	6. Chapter 6

He realized he'd fallen asleep when he woke 6 hours later to Zoe crawling out of bed and towards the bathroom door.

"Zoe?" he asked. She waved behind her and slammed the door shut, locking it. He winced as he heard the familiar coughing. While usually such a sound would repulse him, he instead felt a deep worry building in his chest. He knew it was just the alcohol, but still, all he wanted to do was make it go away. It was just a waiting game, he knew that, he'd had a few over-drinking experiences himself. She coughed again, and then was quiet.

He waited to hear sound of life, to make sure she hadn't suffocated. A moment later she let out a cough, and then a rasping breath. The toilet flushed.

He stood up, tapping at the door. "Zo?" he called. She moaned in response. He opened the door. Her head was resting on her arm which was on the toilet bowl.

"After this I'm sober for life." She said. Her head pounded, but she was relieved to see Reid in the doorway, a look of concern on his face. He stepped inside the small room and crouched down, putting a hand on her back.

"Hey." He said softly.

"Hi," she replied. "you didn't have to stay."

"Of course I did." He said. "You okay?"

"I'll be fine. Can you hand me a hairtye from the knob next to the sink?"

"Yeah." He said, grabbing one and turning back to her. "Come here, let me."

As gently as he could, he smoothed her hair back and tied it into a ponytail at the base of her head. She pressed against his hands, the pressure and careful touching relieving some of the pain. "What happened?" she asked.

"What do you remember?"

"A creepy guy, you pulled your gun on him, taking a shot with Emily and then a few more shots, and then approximately 30 rum and cokes." She said, and he laughed. "Also a blonde lady flirting with you."

"You have impeccable memory for how much you drank." He laughed, and she leaned into him.

"It's more of a curse. My leg hurts a lot." She looked down at the bruise, blue around the edges where his fingers were. "Ugh."

"I'm so sorry I didn't get there sooner." He said. "I should have actually arrested him, I think."

She waved him off, leaning up to kiss his neck. He leaned down for a real kiss, but she put her hand up. "Pukey. I gotta call in sick to work." She said.

"It's Saturday." He explained.

"Oh, is it?" She sat up slightly, wincing again. "I swear, Spence, don't ever let me drink again. My head feels like a rock."

"You just were emotional, I think."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." _43 _he automatically added to the number of apologies so far. "Come try and sleep more." He wrapped his arm around her, helping her up and leading her back to bed.

"Can I die?" she asked as she fell against her pillows, and again he laughed.

"Please don't."

"My head." she groaned.

"You need water." he said. She nodded.

She listened to him walk out of the room and into the kitchen. It felt like her brain was trying to squeeze itself like a dirty sponge. But she was grateful for Spencer. She felt always grateful.

* * *

_2 months later_

Why did he do this? Why did he over and over somehow prove himself to her, make himself even more desirable, make her even more attached to him? Zoe knew he had the accidental talent of slowly making her even more madly in love with him, though she knew she couldn't bring herself say it out loud.

She wondered at his face, how he spoke, and how his eyes shone when he smiled at her.

"Yeah?" he asked, realizing her stare after a while. She sat curled on the couch, a throw blanket around her shoulders.

"Sorry," she looked down, grinning. "I was just thinking and happened to be staring at you at the same time."

He set his book on his knee, marveling at her wavy dark tresses, her delicate fingers and full smile.

_How long had it been now? 3 months_? She wondered. It felt endless. Timeless. _How cliche _she thought.

Of course she was in love with him. How couldn't she be? How could nobody else be? How had he been so alone for so long? He was such an interesting person, such a neverending flow of knowledge.

_"Talk to me._" she'd ask him all the time, when her mind was too quiet for her own good. And he'd tell her everything. Anything and everything, like a walking human encyclopedia. He'd do the same thing, when he felt like his own head was too much. She'd take him away with her quiet, careful way of speaking, and her dumb jokes and bright laughter. She was his escape, like she held a paradise within her. He did his job just as well as he always had, but slowly, every day, it felt more and more like a job and less and less like his life.

"Zoe," he said, interrupting both his own, and her, train of thought. Now she glanced up from her book. "Why are you in my life?"

She looked confused, and slightly apprehensive. "Uh," she began, searching for an answer.

"I mean," he leaned forwards, his hands moving as he spoke. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me. What did I do to deserve you? And what did I do finally right to get someone like you?"

"You just had to wait, I guess." she said quietly. "Why are you asking me all this? Are you okay?"

He smiled, almost wider than she had ever seen it. She craved that smile like a alcoholic craves booze, and it made her knees quiver.

"I love you." he said. "A part of me has been waiting for you my entire life."

She stared at him, her mouth slightly open.

"Seriously?" she whispered after a long pause. He nodded, unsure of how she would react.

She stood up slowly, walking across the room towards him. "I'm in love with you, too, Doctor Spencer Reid. Spencer." she said, crawling onto his lap and straddling him. "Are you sure, though?"

"Never been so sure about something, ever. Trust me." he said.

"I do trust you." she said. Their faces were inches from eachother. "Am I the first?" she said.

"First what?"

"First person you've been in love with?"

"Like this. Where I'm loved back. Only you." he said. She closed her eyes, running her hands on his neck, across his shoulders, down his chest, relishing his heat. A small invisible tug came from the base of her stomach and towards him. She cuddled closer to him, getting blanketed by his smell.

"I love you." she whispered into his neck. "Let's just stay like this."

"Yeah." he said.

* * *

**A/N: Alright folks, there you have it! I knew this would be a shorter story, but I wanted to capture the transitional phase in their relationship. The next addition to my series will follow them into the future, about a year after this. Please follow the next piece if you're interested, I'm just having a blast writing these and hope you guys enjoy them as well! Let me know how you liked it all. Next story will be called 'Home' - you can author subscribe or just look for me on the main page! Much love 3, thank you all so much for your support and reading! See you soon:)**


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